Curious - Any Christian-turned-Buddhist converts here?
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Ya, dharma protectors truely exist, there is a real photograph of a dharma protector at Jen Chen Vihara (not my dharma centre, but it is another Jen Chen centre in Singapore). Other than that, there were stories of people who have yuan with Buddhism, and keep dreaming of dharma protector over and over again telling him that he has affinity with dharma and my master. When met my master, the person described how the dharma protector looked like, and my master knew at once it was the dharma protector.Originally posted by sinweiy:scientific. very good. though how can so many, almost all not get destroy.
we have a theory that it's protected by Dharma Protectors.
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I wonder how cancer happens.Originally posted by HENG@:also, we are talking about sentinent human lives here. can we break them down to compare them to body parts, which do not have an individual soul like a human does? it is, inherently, not a good comparism. -
Cancer curses lah proven and effectiveOriginally posted by Suicine:I wonder how it is possible to have cancer.
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cancer is caused by the dead blood cell that was unable to be kill by the natural immune systemOriginally posted by maggot:Cancer curses lah proven and effective
in Ven haitao talk, he mentioned his mother likes to slaughter ducks
and the duck reborn with vengeance to cause his mother to contract cancer
so dun kill , that is the first precepts -
Let us understand why are some people born with such illnesses or infected with bad illnesses.Originally posted by bohiruci:cancer is caused by the dead blood cell that was unable to be kill by the natural immune system
in Ven haitao talk, he mentioned his mother likes to slaughter ducks
and the duck reborn with vengeance to cause his mother to contract cancer
so dun kill , that is the first precepts
Perhaps, the process is in the 'repay' theory at work. Last life of 'cause', this life of 'effect'. The 'faith' for the existence is present in this life.
Many understand 'Cause & Effect'. But we should consider the 'Cause + Faith = effect'.
Cause is the seedings of action. Faith is sunlight and water. Effect is the result or outcome. This outcome can be positive or negative to some, that depend on the faith. Meaning was water clean or was the sun light too strong etc.
Thus, when we 'SEE' someone in discomfort, try to help them, not only those in pain or illness. Can help, we help. Cannot help, wish them happy and well.
'My' wish is simple, "People happy, 'I' happy' - Just live life simple, and 'qi-cai' can liao.
Come to gain but go without any, only 'my' robe'. Any thing we 'own' this life dun belongs to us. We cannot have 'ownship' of house and car that we buy or relative that we have. It is just that, we can use it temporary this life, in short dun be too attachment, stubbon or ego about what you achieve. We cannot bring ego to death. Try showing ego infornt of 'Di Zang wang Pu Sa'.
End of the day, when we go, no attachment. we can leave calmly.
Metta, Amitahba lord Buddha. -
To clarify things, Sinweiy given me a link and this is what Master Chin Kung says:
true mind is 'ling2 zhi1'
wood and rocks dont have ling zhi, they have no arising thoughts and no wandering thoughts, but they dont know anything (not aware) [they dont have ling zhi, they are bu ling]
true mind also have no arising thoughts and no wandering thoughts but it knows everything, but it is like a mirror reflects everything clearly, it has no arising thoughts and no wandering thoughts but knows every single thing
From Hua Yen Jing dharma discourse 1451b, from 15:00 onwards -
here's the link:Originally posted by An Eternal Now:true mind also have no arising thoughts and no wandering thoughts but it knows everything, but it is like a mirror reflects everything clearly, it has no arising thoughts and no wandering thoughts but knows every single thing
From Hua Yen Jing dharma discourse 1451b, from 15:00 onwards
http://www.amtb-aus.org/
oops, u can say true mind is like mirror, but i actually meant the mineral is like mirror which is w/o wandering thoughts, attachment and duslism (like Buddha) that mean they are already prefect coming from the True Mind. but what make them(mineral) move or 'think" or have consciousness is because they reflect the sentinent mind or movement of sentient beings. They have no ling2 xing4, yes, correct, but when a sentient mind interact with it, it move per se. Just like Master Hui Neng's example of flag/wind/mind move theory. The flag did not move, it's the mind that move.
oso the doctine that we human see water, ghost see blood, deva see crystal. actually the "water"(as label) is still original "water"(as label), but due to different mind sets, the "water"(as label) change into blood or crystal.
oso, Heart Sutra say, Zhao4 Jian4 wu yun. Mineral have Zhao4(reflect) but no Jian4(knowing). Only Mind includes Jian4(knowing).
hope it's clear,
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Oh I see.. thanks for your clear explanationOriginally posted by sinweiy:here's the link:
http://www.amtb-aus.org/
oops, u can say true mind is like mirror, but i actually meant the mineral is like mirror which is w/o wandering thoughts, attachment and duslism (like Buddha) that mean they are already prefect coming from the True Mind. but make them(mineral) move or 'think" or have consciousness is because they reflect the sentinent mind or movement of sentient beings. They have no ling2 xing4, yes, correct, but when a sentient mind interact with it, it move per se. Just like Master Hui Neng's example of flag/wind/mind move theory. The flag did not move, it's the mind that move.
oso, Heart Sutra say, Zhao4 Jian4 wu yun. Mineral have Zhao4(reflect) but no Jian4(knowing). Only Mind includes Jian4(knowing).
hope it's clear,
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Ok now back to your postsOriginally posted by HENG@:ren zhi chu, xing ben shan.
the true self of man is that man is inherently compassionate. it is the external factors that lead man to go astray. if people would concentrate on their "self" and not allow external factors like family, society and country to influence them, this world would be a better place.
war is never due to individual selfishness. it is due to collective selfishness, compassionate people being influenced to join in a society's or a country's collective greed. if people were all individually selfish, putting their well being above all, nobody would want to fight a war because nobody wants to run the risk of being killed would they?
once again i stress that im not saying that this logic is the path to enlightenment, just that the secular world would right now be better off following this logic 1st so that relative peace may be had, b4 further enlightenment can be sought.
also im sure u've all heard of this phrase 'ji li li ren' notice how even in this chinese philosophy of living, self comes before others.
Concentrating on themselves is not contradictory with No-Self. 'Self' can be used in a conventional sense. Like for example, an Arhant does 'concentrate on themselves'/focus on self-liberation and not saving other beings, yet they have fully realised No-Self. Buddha and Bodhisattvas have great compassion, although they realise No-Self, they go on to help all the sentient beings.
I also agree with you on collective selfishness. Collective karma leads to collective catastrophe/disaster. So how? By not taking part in that collective karma. By not being selfish in any way in the first place! Even though individual greed may not cause 'collective wars', it definitely can cause 'individual wars' with others. And being individually selfish doesn't equate to focusing on 'himself'. Actually if you practise the path of Arhant/Hinayana (small vehicle), you only focus on liberating yourself. But even so there is no place for selfishness if you wish to attain liberation. So you can focus on yourself, go retreat into the caves and mountains, meditate all day without ever meeting a single person and attain your own liberation... the highest stage is only Arhantship and not Buddhahood. But if you are selfish (implying you have personal desires for yourSELF, etc etc...) you will not attain liberation because you cannot transcend the illusion of a self, you cannot be freed from Greed, Hatred, Ignorance.
From what I feel about Satanism, there is a sort of 'egotism', self-centeredness (attachment to Self), tainted with the 3 poisons (Greed, Hatred, Ignorance). The problem is not whether you are focusing on yourself or not, but whether it teaches in accordance to Buddhadharma (also see: The Four (dharma) Seals)
But I will always ask people to walk the Bodhisattva way since I am a Mahayana Buddhist. It is through Bodhisattva path that one achieves full Enlightenment: Buddhahood. -
Originally posted by An Eternal Now:
Not sure if I understand what u are saying here, but yeah, Monkey God is kinda traditionalist fiction. I dig on the story big-time, but when talkin lit., it's fiction.
Anyway... Monkey God, as far as I know, is a fictional character. The Journey to the West book is a work of fiction written around the 16th century. It is NOT the real account of the journey to India to get the scriptures by Tang Shan Zhang.
However, it is based on a very true story of a monk's journey west to India to snag some goodies. -
Yes, Tang Shan Zhang went alone to India to retrieve the goodies, the Sutras (Buddhist Scriptures) to China.Originally posted by Northwind:Not sure if I understand what u are saying here, but yeah, Monkey God is kinda traditionalist fiction. I dig on the story big-time, but when talkin lit., it's fiction.
However, it is based on a very true story of a monk's journey west to India to snag some goodies. -
I haven't yet read page by page on this thread so I could be way out of line here, but just responding to each post as I see fit.Originally posted by An Eternal Now:Perhaps.. perhaps.. well, I've known that Christianity used to teach Reincarnation. I am no expert in debating in these things... but from what I've read and in my intuitions, it is probably true. That's all I can say... maybe my friend "Gnostic" is more expert in this
There is something in Christianity (not sure if it is in all sects/schools-of-thought / whatever you call it) called the "Nicene Crede". It is something that people in church say to vow to their beliefs about who is Jesus n God. It is about the "Trinity" the God, Father, Son, & Holy Ghost thing...
Anyway...This "Nicene Creed" came about in the Roman Catholic church during something called "The Council of Nicea"...
This is where they took out the books about re-incarnation (and a few other things), because they were still in the midst of "shaping" the religion, and they felt it would contradict the other books...
That council is one of the reasons I am not to hip about modern xtianity... -
Sometimes, it not because people dont understand Buddhism, its because some dont even know their own (Chinese) history.
Stories like Journey to the West or Liao Zai or Dreams of the Red Chamber, have been made up as fictions long time ago. They were never intended to be non fiction or a historical records.
Its stories like these which illustrated China's 5000 years of colourful and rich history and culture. -
Funny you mention that, Laurence, and I agree (even tho I am ang moh)...
Can u believe that the chinese story - "All men are brothers" / "Marsh-"something I can not remember all the different names of this story.. But can you believe that people have even created wushu styles out of these stories?????? -
Damned good post here...(pardon the pun)...Originally posted by shade343:How do you have a relationship with God if all you do is just read the bible and nothing else...?
I do not consider myself christian, but I do search for old texts...
It is interesting to read say something from St. this or that, before certain things were changed... -
Nice to see someone mention that good ole Sixth Patriarch!Originally posted by sinweiy:Just like Master Hui Neng's example of flag/wind/mind move theory. The flag did not move, it's the mind that move.
He's a guy who helped bring about zen/ch'aan and even help calm stress between taoist n buddhist...I dig on this guy big-time! -
Oh I see... very interesting.. Yea, I believe Christianity after Roman Catholic reforms has changed quite a lot.Originally posted by Northwind:I haven't yet read page by page on this thread so I could be way out of line here, but just responding to each post as I see fit.
There is something in Christianity (not sure if it is in all sects/schools-of-thought / whatever you call it) called the "Nicene Crede". It is something that people in church say to vow to their beliefs about who is Jesus n God. It is about the "Trinity" the God, Father, Son, & Holy Ghost thing...
Anyway...This "Nicene Creed" came about in the Roman Catholic church during something called "The Council of Nicea"...
This is where they took out the books about re-incarnation (and a few other things), because they were still in the midst of "shaping" the religion, and they felt it would contradict the other books...
That council is one of the reasons I am not to hip about modern xtianity... -
new discovery:Originally posted by An Eternal Now:Oh I see.. thanks for your clear explanation
Hua Yen 1453a, 43 min
http://www.amtb-aus.org/
Time is divided into past present and future. then all beings including non-sentient are Buddha to be.
Hua Yen Sutra state: Qin yi wu qin, tong yuan zhong zhi, (sentient and non-sentient, come from the same seed/root.) Complete same seed/root is Buddha. non-sentient are tree, wood, flower, grass, mountian, river, earth etc. which are not Buddha? when refer to Buddha. we always tot Buddha is human. No. Buddha is Zhi4 xing4 or aka Fa3 xing4(Dharma-dhatu?), Fa sheng(Dharmakaya). Fa3 xing4 can project out, can change is Root Purity. When Fa xing is use, it's Fa xiang. Fa xing is call Buddha. Fa xiang is call Fa sheng(Dharmakaya) Buddha. so sentient and non-sentient is Dharmakaya Buddha.
hence the spectum of respectfulness/mindfulness is a lot greater. so Buddha/bodhisattvas treat all beings/things, not because they do good or bad, but because they see the inside of all beings/things. And on the outside, they have no discrimination.
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Dharmdhatu = Fa3 Jie4
Fa Xing = Dharma Nature -
Yes indeed, Dharma Nature pervades all space, it is omnipresentOriginally posted by sinweiy:new discovery:
Hua Yen 1453a, 43 min
http://www.amtb-aus.org/
Time is divided into past present and future. then all beings including non-sentient are Buddha to be.
Hua Yen Sutra state: Qin yi wu qin, tong yuan zhong zhi, (sentient and non-sentient, come from the same seed/root.) Complete same seed/root is Buddha. non-sentient are tree, wood, flower, grass, mountian, river, earth etc. which are not Buddha? when refer to Buddha. we always tot Buddha is human. No. Buddha is Zhi4 xing4 or aka Fa3 xing4(Dharma-dhatu?), Fa sheng(Dharmakaya). Fa3 xing4 can project out, can change is Root Purity. When Fa xing is use, it's Fa xiang. Fa xing is call Buddha. Fa xiang is call Fa sheng(Dharmakaya) Buddha. so sentient and non-sentient is Dharmakaya Buddha.
hence the spectum of respectfulness/mindfulness is a lot greater. so Buddha/bodhisattvas treat all beings/things, not because they do good or bad, but because they see the inside of all beings/things. And on the outside, they have no discrimination.
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yes.Originally posted by An Eternal Now:Dharmdhatu = Fa3 Jie4
Fa Xing = Dharma Nature
btw it is in :
Hua Yen 1453b, 43 min
not 1453a.
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hmm... this topic seems interesting with so many threads, stories and views. Good to carry on.
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Hmm... what do you want to discussOriginally posted by ah_kwang:hmm... this topic seems interesting with so many threads, stories and views. Good to carry on. -
Ok. Back to topic. 'Any Christian-turned-Buddhist converts', as I have mentioned briefly in the first few posts, my master, my dharma teacher, and many people in my dharma centre were ex-Christians.
My Master for instance used to be an ex-Christian Pastor himself. I may have mentioned this several times in different posts, whether briefly or more in details, but I will elaborate on that now.
My Buddhist Master (Shi Fu) first went into spirituality after an incident when he was 12 years old. He was returning from school and along the way on the mountain (in China), a blizzard struck and he sought to take cover in a cave. It was so cold that he was going to freeze to death. At that time, he witnessed a divine sign. Huge words in red appeared in the sky, telling him "Humanity's bliss awaits you to be found". From that point he had the strength and survived and thought it was a miracle from God.
So this is how he became a Christian pastor. He was quite an active pastor in preaching and also wrote Christian books (he passed one of his Christian books with his author name to some of the Christians in U.S who visited him before just to show that he really was a pastor). Then at times, he was aggressive in evangelising and went on to insult Buddhism and degrade Buddhism as a superstitious and demonic religion. That was during his university days if I'm not wrong. His university lecturer heard about his aggressive evangelism and spoke with him about it. The lecturer asked him why is he doing this? My master replied "because the other pastors did so, if I didn't do it, the other pastors will say that I do not know how to preach"... thus he followed them. His university lecturer then told him that it was not the right way - people disliked it, and it will even bring down the university name. He asked my master to study the Buddhist teachings, and from that, write a critique based on his understandings.
So this is the turning point... my master researched into all the Buddhist teachings and could not find anything to write in his critique. On contrary, he agreed on all of the teachings! This is the teachings that will truly bring bliss into humanity. (He always say that Buddhism is the Culture of Bliss.. my dharma centre website is www.humanbliss.com.sg) That is when he begin to truly regret and repent his earlier actions to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.... he turned into a Buddhist monk as a result. He often says "even blapshemy can become a 'yuan' for one to encounter Dharma". Sometimes inconceivable. -
My dharma teacher also had inconceivable and 'divine intervention' stories that led her to turn into Buddhism just on that day she was going to be baptized! (her friends who brought her to baptize in the past are now in my dharma centre) From these we can see that the Tathagathas will really help to awaken past life practitioners to their bodhisattva vows
But enough stories for now